Machine for forming an annular sheet metal workpiece



J. G. KAY

Aug. 13, 1957 MACHINE FOR FORMING AN ANNULAR SHEET METAL WORKPIECE I v 9 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed Dec. 22, 1950 II lllllllllllu INVENTOR. John Glcv ATTORNEY Aug. 13, 1957 J. G. KAY

MACHINE FOR FORMING AN ANNULAR SHEET METAL WORKPIECE .9 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed D00. 22. 1950 INVENTOR. John (1'. May

A TTORNE Y J. G. KAY

Aug. 13,' 1957 MACHINE FOR FORMING AN ANNULAR SHEET METAL WORkPIECE 9 Sheets-Sheet 5 Original Filed Dec. 22. 1950 L? E H w I G 01 MM TT -A w w FIG; 14

Aug. 13, 1957 J. G. KAY MACHINE FOR FORMING AN ANNULAR SHEET METAL WORKPIECE Original Filed Dec. 22, 1950 9 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENT OR. John L. ATTORNEY J. G. KAY

Aug. 13, 1957 MACHINE FOR FORMING AN ANNULAR SHEET METAL WORKPIECE Original Filed Dec. 22 1950 9 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVHITOR. Iol'mG. (day -1 lCr. ii

ATTORNEY J. G. KAY

'9 Sheets-Sheet 6 Aug. 13, 1957 V MACHINE FOR FORMING AN ANNULAR SHEET METAL WORKPIECE Original Filed Dec. 22, 1950 J. G. KAY

Aug. 13; 1957 MACHINE FOR FORMING AN ANNULAR SHEET METAL WORKPIECE Original Filed Dec. 22 1950 9 Sheets-Sheet 7 BY INVENTOR John (I. May

ATTURNEY Allg- 1957 J. G. KAY

MACHINE FOR FORMING AN ANNULAR SHEET METAL WORKPYIECE Original Filed Dec. v22, 1950 9 Shepts-Shaet 8 IN V EN TOR. John (1- ly BY W R I ATTORNEY J. G. KAY

Aug. 13, 1957 MACHINE FOR FORMING AN ANNULAR SHEET METAL WORKPIECE Original Filed Dec. 22, 1950 9 Sheets-Sheet 9 23 INVENTOR. John (1. Kay

W. R. 6km

ATTORNEY MACHINE FOR FORMING AN ANNULAR SHEET METAL WORKPIECE John Gilchrist Kay,.Detroit, Mich., assignor to The Budd Company, Philadelphia, Pa'., a corporation of Pennsylvania Original application December 22, 1950, Serial No. 202,191, new Patent No. 2,659,407, dated November 17, 1953. Divided and this'application February 25, 1953, Serial No. 346,816

Claims. (Cl. 113-38) The invention relates to a machine for die-pressing annular metal blanks having a depressed central portion and endsfiaring outwardly from said central portion, for example, such blanks as form an intermediate stage in the manufacture of drop center rirns for automobile wheels. Such machine is generally of the type disclosed in co-pen'ding application S. N; 70,552 filed January 12, 1949, in the names of Robert O. Greenshields et' a1. and entitled Method and Machine for Forming Rims and the Like, now Patent No. 2,586,029, February 19, 1952.

This application is a division of cope'nding application Serial No. 202,191 filed December 22, 1950, now Patent No. 2,659,407, November 17, 1953.

It is a general object of the invention to simplify the construction of such machine, to provide against serious injury to the machine due to careless operation, and to provide simple and reliable feeding mechanism for feeding the blanks to and from operative relation to the machine.

These and other objects and advantages and the manner in which they are attained will become fully apparent from the following detailed description when read in connection with the drawings forming a part of this specification.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a central vertical sectional view, on line 11 of Fig. 10, through the die mechanism of the machine showing the workpiece to be formed in position, and the dies fully open; the position of the parts being that at the beginning of the downward strokeof the press;

Fig. 1a is a diagrammatic view showing the relative positions of a safety pin and a cam on the crankshaft of the press and parts associated therewith, corresponding to the stage of the press cycle shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1, this view showing a stage in the downward stroke of the press in which the lower die is supported on the'safety pin in slightly spaced relation to the lower die shoe, the weight of the lower die having just been transferred from its support by the upper die shoe to its support by the safety pin;

Fig. 2a is a view similar to Fig. la'showingthe rela-- tive position of the parts at the stage in the press cycle shown in Fig. 2;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 1, this'view showing a later stage in the downward stroke of the press in which cams carried by the upper die shoe have just engaged-the cam faces on the radially-movable closing-in dies, which are held vertically-spaced a predetermined distance from the upper face of the lower die shoe;

Fig. 3a is a view similar to Fig. 1a showing the relative position of the parts at the stage in thepress cycle shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 1, this view showing a further stage in the downward stroke of the press in which the cams have moved the closing-in dies radially inwardly into engagement with the workpiece, and holesin the bottoms of the closing-in dies'ha've been brought'into vertical alignment with respective supporting" pins pronited States Patent 0 jecting upwardly from thelower die shoe; at'thisstage, the lower die has started downward fromits'positlon lIIdl cated in the precedingfigures but-has not yet come in contactwith the lower die shoe. 1 v V a Fig. 4a is a view similar to Fig. 1a showing the relative position of the parts at the stage of the press cycle showninFig.4;' p r I ig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 1, this view showing a fiirther stage in the downwardstrok of the pressin thelowe'r die support'has come to rest upon the lower die shoe, with the safety pin in its-lowered position; at this stage the lower parts of the telescoping cam projections carried by the upper die shoehave come into contact with the press bed and started to: telescope;at this stage'no work has yet been performed on: the workpiece; H Fig. 5a is a view similar to Fig. 1a showing the relative position of the parts at thestage of'the press cycle shown in Fig. 5; I k

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig.- 1, this view showing the final stage in the downward stroke of the press in which the dies have closed to form the workpiece to the desired'shape; in this final stage the upper and the closing in dies move downwardlydogether and the supporting pins for the closing-in die's enter the hole's inlthe bottoms of the'respective' such die's;

Fig. 6a is a view similar to Fig. 1d showing therelativ'e positions of the p'arjtsjatthe stage of the press cycle shown inFig. 6;

Fig. 7 isa side elevatio'nal View", partly diagrammatic, of a press to which the invention has been shown applied, this view iIlnsQtratingQpartictIIarIy the cam on the end'o'f the crankshaft of the; press and" the means associated therewith andconine'cting it to the safety pin (showniii dotted lines) to control the vertical movements of the latter; I J v Fig; 8' is a fragmentary enlarged view, as seen from the frontofthe' press part's being broken away and sh'own insecti'on, the line of; section being. indicated bytheline 88 of Fig.7; p

Fig. an enlarged detail sectional View, the section being taken along the line9 -9 of Fig. 7;

Fig. 10" is a horizontal sectional view, the section be} ing taken substantially along the line 10-10 -of Fig 5;

Figlfl-l is an enlarged detail sectional view througha step pin for limiting the upward movement'of the plate c'ai'fylng the closing-in-diesjthis view showing-the plate at the upper limit-of its movement and thes'ection being taken substantially alongthe line 11 11,of Fig.v 10;

'Fig; 1215a view similar-to Fig. 11, butishowing the closing-in die carrying plate in .its lowe'red position;

Fig; 13 is an inside elevational View of one of the cam support's'carried by and projecting downwardly from Elie ripper die shoe, as see-h from the line 13-13 of a L" Fig. 14 is aiiZoutside elevational'view of saidcjani supp'ort, as seen fioni' the line +14 of Fig. 1; I

Figs"i 15 and 16 are enlarged ,d'etail sectional views taken-resp'ectiyely on" the-lines 1s 1s and 16 -1'6.of Fig. 1;

Fig. 17 is a fragmentary sectional detail View onan enlarged scale, showing the relative position of the dies as the closing-in" dies appioachtheir radially inner posi tion; in thisposition they erji'ga'ge under the upper flange of a finished workpiece wsu porrisin the event the operator is" careless enough to leave a finished workpiece in'th'e press, and then operates the press to execute its cycle of operation; thesafety pin is here shown in its raised position, holding the lower die suppdrt an'dthe fi nished workpiece inaraisedposition which makes possible the engagement of the closing in dies under its upper fiangeto siippdrt it'j' Fig. 18 is a view similar to Fig. 17, but at a later stage this event, the lower die and the workpiece would descend to, their lower position as shown, before the closing-in dies have contracted to support the workpiece, with the result that the workpiece would be distorted somewhat as shown in Fig.20, and serious injury to the machine would result; Figs. 21 and 22 are views similar, respectively, to Figs. 17 and 18, showing the action of the dies upon an unfinishedworkpiece, these views being shown for ready comparison with Figs. 17 and 18 where the dies are operating on a finished workpiece;

Fig. 23 is an elevational view of a portion of the front of. the machine, showing the feeding mechanism in its re- 'lation to the cooperating parts of the machine, the upper die shoe and press plunger or ram being shown near the upper, limit of their movement and just engaging the feeding mechanism to lift it in their further upward movement; the finished workpiece is shown seated on the lower die which moves with the upper die in this portion of the stroke of the press; Fig. 24 is a'similar view of the left-hand side of the machine with the parts shown in a further raised position in which the guiding rails have been moved inwardly, by the stationary cams on the press frame, to engage under .the top flange of the finished workpiece; in this view the mechanism for accelerating the upward movement of the feeding mechanism isabout to become operative in the further upward movement of the press plunger;

Fig. 25 is a similar view of the right-hand side of the machine showing the workpiece lifted off the lower die by the accelerated movement of the feeding mechanism over that of the plunger of the press in the last of the upward stroke thereof;

Fig. 26 is a plan view of the feeding mechanism with parts shown more or less diagrammatically and in section, the position of the parts in this view corresponding generally to that shown in Fig. 23;

" Fig. 27 is a similar plan view of the feeding mechanism with the parts positioned substantially as shown in Fig. 25,. a finished workpiece being shown in full lines in central position and in dot-and-dash lines in a position about to be discharged from the machine;

Fig-28 is a side elevational view of the feeding mechanism, parts being shown in vertical-section through the center line of the machine, this view showing a finished workpiece about to be-pushed, by a workpiece to be formed in the machine, along the rails toward the discharge end thereof;

Fig. 29 is a similar view of the, feeding mechanism,

showing the finished workpiece leaving the rails and the unfinished workpiece located centrally of the machine in axial alignment with the upper and lower dies; this view also shows in dot-and-dash lines, a further position of the finished workpiece as it leaves the machine;

Fig. 30 is a view' similar to Fig.25, but showing only the left-hand side of the machine, showing the unfinished workpiece'and the associated parts in'positions corresponding to their positions in Fig. 29; a

Fig. 31 is a view similar to Fig. 23, but showing only the right-hand side of the machine, with the rails moved outwardly and the workpiece dropped down and resting on the lower die;

Fig. 32 is a detail part-sectional view through the rail supports,- showing the spring means for at all times urging the rails outwardly against the cams on the pressframe;

and

Fig. 33 is a sectional view taken on the line 33-33 of Fig. 32.

The invention has been shown in connection with a machine for manufacturing drop center rims to substantially their final form in whichthey have, as is perhaps best seen in the enlarged viewof Fig. 17, side flanges 10 and 11, adjacent bead seats 12 and 13, respectively, and a central drop center base 14, interconnected with the bead seats by inclined side walls 15 and 16, respectively. The rim is shown as an asymmetrical rim in which one side wall, as 15, is inclined more gently than the other; but it will be understood that the invention is equally applicable, by the selection of suitable die faces, to other forms of rims or to other contoured annular members.

This finished or formed workpiece is designated throughout the views generally by the reference letter F. The unfinished workpiece, or the workpiece to be formed, on the other hand, is designated generally by the reference letter U.

This unfinished workpiece U comprises, as clearly shown in Fig. 21, a depressed central portion 17, of substantially the diameter of the depressed portion 14 of the finished workpiece F and flared end portions tapering radially outwardly from said central portion and designated, respectively, 18 and. 19. The diameter of the margins of said tapered portions corresponds generally to the diameter of the margins of the finished workpiece F.

.The die mechanism forming a main feature of the vention is designed for association with a single-action vertical press of the type in which, at each cycle of operation of the press, a plunger or ram, guided by the standards or side frames of the press, descends from a raised inoperative position to a lower working position and is returned automatically to its raised position, after which the cycle of operation is repeated.

Such a press is shown full length in Fig. 7 in side elevation, and comprises a frame designated generally by 20 resting on a suitable floor foundation and having mounted in its upper head portion 21, carried by spaced standards or side frames, as 22, rising from the base or bed 23 of the press, the usual crankshaft 24. This crankshaft 24 is connected in a usual manner to the plunger'or ram 25, see Fig. 23, to reciprocate it. The drive to the crankshaft 24 is through the usual gearing, designated generally by 26 and a motor 27 supported on top of the frame 17 and driving the gearing through the usual belt and pulley connection.

Since the press per se forms no part of the invention, its general working need be no further described. Where the press has been modified to incorporate the invention, such modification will be explained in the following de scription.

Referring now to Figs. 1 to 22, showing the die mechanism and the manner in which it is controlled in the operation of the press, it will be seen that such mechanism comprises a lower die shoe 28 seated on the press bed 23 and an upper die shoe 29 secured to the plunger 25, see Fig. 23, and movable with it in the press cycle. Centrally of the upper die shoe and rigidly secured thereto is an upper die 30, adapted to engage the radially inner face of the upper end of the workpiece in the descent of the plunger. Opposed to this upper die is a lower die 31 carried by a plate 32. This lower die is adapted to engage the radial inner face of the lower end of the workpiece, and is adapted tosupport the workpiece. It is movable from a raised position, shown in Fig. l, in which the workpiece is seated thereon, to a depressed position in which it seats on the lower die shoe. Its movement is controlled in part by the movement of the plunger of the press and in part by the crankshaft of the press.

Through the first part of the downward movement of theplunger and attached upper die 30,.the lower die 31 moves with them, since its carrying plate 32 is supported through rods, as 33, by a plate 34 disposed below the press bed, these rods sliding in openings'in the lower die shoe28. The plate 34 is, in' turn, supported "from the upper die shoe 29 by rods, as 35, whoselower ends pass freely through holes in the plate 34, and support it through adjustable screw-threaded abutments 36 on the lower ends of the rods 35.

For cooperation with the upper and lower dies30 and 31, an annular series of normally outwardly-located radially movable closing-in dies 37 are provided. These dies are slidably carried by a plate 38 which is normally held raised a predetermined slight distance above the lower die shoe 28, see Figs. 1, 2, and 11. The means for so holding it may comprise an air cushion of tele scopic cylinder-piston type 39 the" piston of'which'is supported from the press bed-by rods, as" 40, see Fig. 1, and the cylinder of 'which supports the plate 38 through rods, as 41, slidable in openings in the lower die shoe 28 and freely passing through openings in the'plate34.

To limit the upward movement of the-closing-in dies under the action of the air cushion, stop means are provided. As clearly shown in Figs. 11 and 12, such stop means may comprise pins 42 secured in the lower die shoe 28 and having sliding engagement with openings in the plate 38 carrying the closing-in dies. At their upper ends, these pins have enlargements 43 which engage the top of the plate 38 to limit its upward movement under the yielding pressure of the air cushion 39. i

To provide for the safe operation of the machine, even if the operator carelessly leaves a finished blankin the machine, and operates thepress for a restrikeof the finished blank, safety means are providedto insure that no harm can result in such event. 7

Such means comprises a positive stop to arrest the downward movement of the lower die 31-, at a point slightly raised above the lower die shoe, so thatthewo'rkpiece is held in this slightly raised position-until theclosing-in: dies have been moved inwardly to" engage the radially outer face of the blank, by means to' be herein after described.

Such positive stop isshown as comprising a vertical- 1y sliding pin 44' mounted in the lower die shoe 28 and whose movements are timed with the press cycle and controlled by a cam 45 onthe end of the crankshaft24. See Figs. la -to-6a inclusive, 7, 8,.and 9. Thispin is'normally, that is, during most of the verticalstroke of the press, held in raised position, as shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, by a lever-linkage mechanism operatively interconnecting the pin'and cam; Such lever-linkage-mecha nism comprises a bell crank lever 46 mounted in-the lowerdie shoe 28 andhavingone arm engaging the lower end of the pin 44, a link'47, connecting the other arm of said lever 46 to one arm of a secondbell crank lever 48pivota1ly mounted on a bracket 49 secured to theadjacen't si'deframe 220fth'e press frame 20'." A long link 50 connects*the other arm of the bell crank 48 to oneend of a curved lever 51, which lever is pivoted intermediate its ends at 52 to a bracket 53 and has at its opposite end a cam-follower roller 54.

To provide for adjustment between the. cam and camfollower roller, the bracket 53 is pivotally mounted-on the axis of the'carn shaftthroughbearings'SS and has one end thereof connected to a rod'56, see Fig. 7, having an adjustable'conn'ectioh 57 at its lower endto the pressframe17. This providesforthe accurate timing of the release of the safety pin-with the press cycle.

The closing-in dies 37 are moved inwardly'o'n the descent'of the press-plunger through-the interaction of cam faces 58 carried by cam supports 59 secured to the lower facelof the upper-die shoe, and corresponding cam faces 60on1=the respective die carriers 61 for the closing-in dies 37. One such cam support is provided for 'each'closing in die and, since all of them are: similarly constructed, a; description'of the construction of one will suffice.

Omthe outer face of each cam-support is: provided a cam face 62; whichis arrangedio;engageiazcoaactinga face 63"on the die carrier 61 to cause the outward or opening movement of the dies 37 on the return stroke of the ress.

P In the present construction; the cam supports 59 are made of two telescopic parts, see Figs. 1 and 13 to 15 inclusive, an upper part 59a and a lowerpart 59b, these two parts being held extended by springs 64 and limited in their relative telescoping movement by the pin and slot connection 65. This telescopic construction is provided to avoid cutting holes into the press bed to receive the cam-carrying supports.

Referring to Figs. 1, 2, and 3, it will be seen that the closing-in dies 37 are positively held in their raised positlon by short-pins 66 projecting upwardly from the lower die shoe 28 through openings in-the plate 38 to slidingl engage the underside of the closing-in d-ie carriers 61. When the dies have been moved radially inwardly to the position shown in Fig. 4, where they are shown moved into engagement with the radially'outer face of theworkpiece, these pins are brought into vertical alignment with the openings 67 in the respective die carriers, after which the air cushion alone opposes the descent of the die carriers and closing-in dies 37. These positive holding pins are provided to prevent bouncing of the closing-in dies and their carriers on the air cushion, when the cams 58, 60'engage to force the closing-in dies inwardly.

After the closing-in dies have been engaged with the work, as shown in Fig. 4, further descent of the press plunger causes the upper die to descend into engagement with' the workpiece, so that the workpiece is grippedby the dies, as shown in Fig. 5. Up to thistime, no work has been done on the workpiece. The lower diehas been released to descent and rest on the lower die shoe, and the upper and closing-in diesare about to descend together in the final downward movement of the press plunger and the upper die and thus" close in and form the workpiece, as shown in Fig; 6. n p

The enlarged views of'Figfs. l7 and'l8 and 21 and 22 show the relative position of the dies in'the' final stages of the downward movement. Figs. 17 and 18 show them when operating upon a finished'workpiece F upon restrike, and Figs. 21 and 22 are similar views showing the dies operating upon an unfinished workpiece U.

The condition shown in Figs. 19 and 20, which would Iesultin damage to the machine, can never happen by reason of the fact that'the safety stoppin' 44 positively prevents the descent of the lower die, as here shown, before the closing-in dies have moved in to engage and support the workpiece independently of the lower die.

With the machine as so far' described, it will be seen that the die operation is adapted foreither closing-in upon a finished or an unfinished blank-equally without causing any damage to the machine. 7 His thus made foolproof and insured against the possibility that a'finished blank is left in the machine and the press then operated.

To speed up'the operation, the machine is further provided with a work-feeding and discharge mechanism which facilitates the feedingof the unfinished work-U into the machine and the discharge of the finished piece F therefrom. This feedingmechanism is shown in Figs. 23 to 33 inclusive in association with related parts of the press and the dies.

This feeding mechanism comprises as a main element thereof, two spaced guiding and supporting rails 67, 67 which extend fore and aft of the machine between the side frames 22, see Figs; 26 and 27, and are supported thereby for limited vertical movement as well as move ment toward each other to engage the workpiece or away from each other to release it. Each rail 67 is mounted on a pair of horizontal arms 68, one-engaging each of the rails at one end thereof and havin'gits opposite end secured to a vertically slidableframe, generallydesignate'd 69; Suchavertically slidable frame is provided at both the fore and aft sides of the-'- machine tosup'p'ort the re'= spective ends ofthe rails. Each of these frames comprises vertical rods as 70 interconnected at the top by a transverse member 71, see Figs. 23, 24, and 25. The vertical rods have their lower ends slidably mounted in tubular sockets 72 secured to the lower die shoe 28. Abutment blocks 73 having an inwardly extending shoulder 74 are secured onthe rods just below the toptransverse member 71. The rods also pass through openings in the upper die shoe 29. a Y

The vertical movement of the rails is imparted to them by the vertical movement of the press plunger and the attached upper die shoe, and the in and out movement of the rails is imparted to them through the engagement of roller cam followers 75 with cooperating cams 76 fixcdlymounted at the fore and aft sides of the side frames 28. To cause the rail movement to follow the cams, horizontal members 68 carrying the rails are formed as telescoping members 68a, 6812, one 68a carrying the rail and follower and sliding on the other 6812, which is rigidly secured to the adjacent rod 70. The rails are constantly urged outwardly by a spring 77 housed in the telescoping support member, see Figs. 32 and 33.

To lift the finished workpiece off the lower die there is provided an accelerated movement to the rail-carrying frame 69 in the final upward movement of the press plunger. According to the invention, this accelerated movement is attained by mounting two-armed levers, as 78, on the top of the upper die shoe in such position that one end of each lever is in position to engage the adjacent shoulder 74 on the frame 69 to cause the other end to rise and lift a pin 79, slidably mounted in the transverse member 71. This pin 79 is in position to engage an adjustable stop pin 80 mounted in a transverse member 81 rigidly carried by the side frames 22 of the press.

As the press plunger approaches the top of its stroke, the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 23, with the upper die shoe engaging the abutments 73 and starting to lift the frame 69. The rails are located directly opposite the workpiece F in position to engage under the top flange thereof when moved inward. In the further upward movement from the position shown in Fig. 23, the frame 69 moves with the upper die shoe and the cams force the rails inwardly as shown in Fig. 24 to engage under the upper flange of the workpiece. At this point the pins 79 engage the associated stops 80, and these act through the two-armed levers 78 to accelerate the upward movement of the frame 69 over that of the upper die shoe, and thereby lift the finished workpiece off the lower die, as shown in Fig. 25.

While the press is stopped in this upper position, the finished workpiece F, see Figs. 28 and 29, is pushed along the rails toward the back of the machine by the operator feeding an unfinished workpiece U onto the rails and to the center of the machine, see Figs. 28 and 29. As shown in Figs. 26 and 27, the rails are cut away at 82 at the rear of the machine so that the finished rim F falls down to the position shown in full lines in Fig. 29,

where it strikes a tilting bar 83, which causes it to tip over and slide down an incline 84 away from the machine. The unfinished blank U is readily centered in the machine by depressions 67a cut into the rails at this central location, see Figs. 26 and 27.

Now when the press is operated with the workpiece U in position shown in Figs. 29 and 30, the rails are caused to move down and then separate as shown in Fig. 31, and the workpiece ,is'deposited on the lower die.

The operation of the machine with the workpiece so in place on the lower die will now be described. The parts are now in substantially the position shown in Fig. 1, with the closing-in dies 37 radially removed from the path of the lower die 31 and workpiece U seated thereon, and are positively held in slightly raised position above the lower die shoe by the pins 66, and further yieldingly by the air cushion 39. At this stage of the press'cycle, the upper and lowerdies are moving downwardly together since M8 the lower die 31'issupported by the rods 35 'moving'with the upper-die 30. The safety'pin 44 is held in the raised position by the cam 45, the follower having just engaged the high portion of the cam, through the interconnected lever-linkage, as shown in Fig; la. ,The cam supports 59 from the upper die shoe 29 engage the closing-in die carriers 61 to holdthe'closing-in dies 37 in radially outward position.

In the further downward movement of the press plunger and upper die 30 attached thereto, as shown in Fig. 2, the lower die has moved down to seat upon the pin 44, where it is raised slightly above the lower die shoe 28, so that the workpiece is supported in horizontal aligned position for engagement by the closing-in dies 37, the closing-in dies are still held in their outer position, and the upper die 30 is moving downwardly independently of movement of the lower die, since the abutments 36 on rods35 have moved away from the plate 34. As shown in Fig. 2a, the cam 45 is still holding the pin 44 in the raised position. In the succeeding stage shown in Fig. 3, the lower and closing-in dies are still in the position of Fig. 2, but the upper die has approached the workpiece. The earns 58 on the upper die shoe are just engaging the cams 60 on the closing-in die carriers 61 to move them radially inwardly. The safety pin 44 still is held in operative position by the cam 45, as shown in Fig. 3a.

In the next stage shown in Fig. 4, the closing-in dies 37 have been moved inwardly to engage the workpiece; the upper die 30 is about to engage the workpiece, the lower die 31 is being released by the cam 45, see Fig. 4a, to allow it to be lowered, and the lower die 31 is shown approaching its lowest position.

In the next stage shown in Fig. 5, all the dies have engaged the workpiece, but no material work has yet been done on it, the lower die 31 has descended to rest on the lower die shoe 28, and the upper die 30 and the closing in dies 37 are about to descend. As shown in Fig. 5a, at this stage the safety pin 44 is in inoperative lowered position.

In the final stage of the forming operation shown in Fig. 6, the press plunger has descended to its lower limit, and the dies have closed in upon the work to form it to its desired shape. In this and the preceding stage, the cam supports 59, having engaged with the press bed 23, are shown with their parts telescoping. The upward stroke of the press starts with the parts in the position of Fig. 6, and the movement is generally the reverse of that described in the working stroke, except that now the finished workpiece is raised by the lower die to the position shown in Fig. 23, after which the feeding mechanism takes hold, as already described, and lifts it off the lower die, as shown in Fig. 25. It can then he pushed out of the machine by feeding a new workpiece along the rails toward the center of the machine, as shown in Figs. 27, 28, and 29. After the new workpiece has been centered on the machine, the press is again operated, and in the first of the downward movements of the plunger, the workpiece is deposited on the lower die, as shown in Figs. 30 and 31, after which, in the further cycle of the press, the operation above described is repeated.

While a specific machine has been herein fully described in detail, it will be understood that changes and modifications maybe made, by those skilled in the art, Without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, as expressed in the appended claims.

. What is claimed is:

1. In a machine for forming an annular sheet metal workpiece, such as a drop center wheel rim, having a depressed central portion and outwardly flaring margins in the cross section of the annulus, the combination with a vertical single-action press having a bed, side frames supported on and rising from said bed leaving an opening fore and aft of the press between the side frames, and a plunger guided for vertical reciprocatory movement between the side frames toward and away from the press asoarso bed in a cycle of operation ofthe press, and die mechanism associated with said press and including an upper die rigidly secured to the plunger and a'lower die opposed to-said upper die and supported from the plunger in spaced relation to said upper die when the pressplunger is in its upper position, of spaced guide rails extending across the space between the side frames just above the upper position of said lower die for guiding a workpiece to be operated on by the machine into alignment with said dies, said guide rails being mounted for vertical move ment withsaid press plunger and said upper and lower dies, and means operative in the downward movement of the plunger and rails to lower the rails relative to the lower die and to spread said spaced rails to allow the workpiece to pass by gravity between the rails and rest upon the lower die, said rails being mounted on vertical slidable rods having parts engaged by the plunger'when it has risen a certain distance" to raise thev rails; with the plunger, said rails being mounted for horizontal movement on said rods, and fixed cam means operative when the rail-carrying rods are moved up and down for caus ing the rails to move in and out horizontally in the manner set forth.

2. In a machine for forming an annular sheet metal workpiece, such as a drop center wheel rim, having a de pressed central portion and outwardly flared margins in the cross section of the annulus, the combination with a vertical single-action press having a bed, side frames supported-n and rising from said bed leaving an opening from front to rear of the press between said side frames, and a plunger guided for vertical reciprocatory movement between said side frames toward and away from the press bed in a cycle of operation of the press, and die mechanism associated with the press including a die movable at least during the beginning and end of the press cycle with the plunger and adapted to receive an unfinished workpiece thereon at the beginning of the press cycle and to raise the finished workpiece to a press-feeding level near the completion of the cycle, of feeding mechanism for the press comprising spaced guide rails extending fore and aft of the press between said side frames and adapted to receive, from the front of the press, an unfinished workpiece for transfer thereon to a central location in alignment with said die, and to guide the finished workpiece for discharge therefrom at the rear of the press, and means which moves said rails vertically at times and which moves them laterally from and toward each other at times in coordination with the movements of said die for automatically transferring the unfinished centered workpiece from said rails to said die at the beginning of the press cycle and for automatically transferring the finished work piece from said die to said rails during the final stages of the press cycle, said rails being mounted on vertical slidable rods having parts engaged by the plunger when it has risen a certain distance to raise the rails with the plunger, said rails being mounted for horizontal movement on said rods, and fixed cam means operative when the rail-carrying rods are moved up and down for causing the rails to move in and out horizontally in the manner set forth.

3. In a machine for forming an annular sheet metal workpiece, such as a drop center wheel rim, including a depressed central portion and outwardly flared margins in the cross section of the annulus, the combination with a vertical single-action press having a bed, side frames supported on and rising from said bed leaving an opening from front to rear of said press between the side frames, and a plunger guided for vertical reciprocatory movement between the side frames toward and away from the press bed in a cycle of operation of the press, and die mechanism associated with the press including a die movable at least during the beginning and end of the cycle with the press plunger and adapted to have seated thereon an unfinished workpiece at the beginning of the press cycle and to raise the finished workpiece to a press-feeding level 1'0 nearthe close of the cycle, of feeding mechanism for'the press comprising spaced guiding and supporting railsadapted' to engage and support either an unfinished or a finished workpiece, said rails extending fore and aft between the side frames of the press and serving to guide an unfinished workpiece for sliding movement along the rails from the front of the press to a position in axial alignment with said die and to guide a finished workpiece for sliding movementalong the rails from the die position for discharge at the rear of the press, said rails having depressions at the die'position for holding a workpiece in alignment with the die, and means for lowering and spreading the rails at times for supplying a workpiece to by the plunger when it has risen a certain distance to raise the rails with the plunger, said rails being mounted for horizontal movement on said rods, and fixed cam means operative when the rail-carrying rods are moved up and down for causing the rails to move in and out horizontally in the manner set forth.

4. In a machine for forming an annular sheet metal workpiece, such as a drop center wheel rim, including a depressed central portion and outwardly flared margins in the cross section of the annulus, the combination with a vertical single-action press having a bed, side frames supported on and rising from said bed leaving an opening from front to rear of said press between the side frames, and a plunger guided for vertical reciprocatory movement between the side frames toward and away from the press bed in a cycle of operation of the press, and die mechanism associated with the press including a die movable at least during the beginning and end of the cycle with the press plunger and adapted to have seated thereon an unfinished workpiece at the beginning of the press cycle and to raise the finished workpiece to a press-feeding level near the close of the cycle, of feeding mechanism for the press comprising spaced guiding and supporting rails adapted to engage and support either an unfinished or a finished workpiece, said rails extending fore and aft between the side frames of the press and serving to guide an unfinished workpiece for sliding movement along the rails from the front of the press to a position in axial alignment with said die and to guide a finished workpiece for sliding movement along the rails from the die position for discharge at the rear of the press, said nails being mounted for approach and separation movements and for limited vertical movement, said movements being controlled by means rendered operative by the movement of the press plunger to causethe rails to separate near the beginning of the press cycle and thereby allow an unfinished workpiece carried thereby to seat upon said die, and to approach each other in the final upward movement of the plunger to operatively engage the finished workpiece seated on the die and, by an accelerated upward movement of the rails, over thatof the plunger, lift it off the die, said rails being mounted on vertical slidable rods having parts engaged by the plunger when it has risen a certain distance to raise the rails with the plunger, said rails being mounted for horizontal movement on said rods, and fixed cam means operative when the rail-carrying rods are moved up and down for causing the rails to move in and out horizontally in the manner set forth.

5. In a machine for forming an annular sheet metal workpiece, such as a drop center wheel rim, including a depressed central portion and outwardly flared margins in the cross section of the annulus, the combination with a vertical single-action press having a bed, side frames supported on and rising from said bed leaving an opening from front to rearof said press between the side frames, and a plunger guided for vertical reciprocatory movement between the side frames toward and away from the press bed in a cycle of operation of the press, and die mech- 1 1 anism'associated-with the press including a die movable at least during the-beginning and end of the cycle with the press plunger and adapted to have seated thereon an unfinished workpiece at the beginning of the press cycle and to raise the finished workpiece to a press-feeding level near the close of the cycle, of feeding mechanism for the press comprising spaced guiding and supporting rails adapted to engage and support either an unfinished or a finished workpiece, said rails extending fore and aft between the side frames of the press and serving to guide an unfinished workpiece for sliding movement along the rails from the front of the press to a position in axial alignment with said die and to guide a finished workpiece for sliding are mounted and comprising normally spr ing extended horizontal telescoping supports for-the rails'cooperating with fixed eams on-the. press frames, which means are rendered operative in the movement of the press plunger to cause-the rails to separatenear the beginning of the presscyele toallow a centered unfinished workpiece supported thereby to pass between them and seat upon the die; and to approach each other in the final upward movement of the plunger near the completion of a cycle to operatiyely engage the finished workpiece'seated on the die and, by an accelerated movement of said frame or frames over that of the plunger, lift it ofi the die.

. References Cited in the file ofthis patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,586,029 Greenshields Feb. 19, 1 952 

